General Admission Requirements

Note: Admissions requirements vary among programs. Faculty who review applications from prospective students are encouraged to consider all components of each student’s application for their program.

The following minimum criteria should be met:

Submission of the online application and applicable application fee. Note: To complete your application to the UAB Graduate School, you will need to write a personal statement. You may wish to prepare that statement well in advance of your application deadline. The statement calls for a brief summary of your academic interests, career goals, and relevant background experience. For tips on writing a personal statement, click here [link to the document that you just added to the Professional Development site].

A recognized baccalaureate, graduate or professional degree from a regionally accredited (e.g. SACS) college or university, or an international equivalent based on a four-year curriculum.

Applicants holding only a bachelor’s degree should have earned a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (B average) in all Junior and Senior level course work. Most programs require applicants to provide scores from a standardized aptitude examination, such as the GRE, MAT, or GMAT.

Applicants should have an undergraduate major acceptable in content and quality to the selection committee of the program to which they are applying.

For international students whose first language is not English, a minimum score of 550 on the paper test, 213 on the computer version, or 80 on the internet based test of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), or a minimum score of 6.0 - 6.5 on the IELTS test is recommended.

NOTE: ETS is revising the current GRE general test. If tests are taken between August and November 2011, the score reporting will be delayed until mid-November, 2011. Please contact ETS (www.ets.org) for more information.

Transcript Requirements

The Graduate School must receive one official transcript from each postsecondary institution attended, including community colleges and high school dual-enrollment. If indicated as a requirement on the program-specific admissions checklist (http://www.uab.edu/graduate/current-students/prospective-students/3-students/prospective/461-admissions-checklist), a duplicate copy of each transcript should also be mailed directly to the designated contact person on the checklist. It is the applicant’s responsibility to make the appropriate arrangements to send transcripts to both the Graduate School and, if applicable, the program to which they are applying.

Applicants who are currently enrolled at other institutions should send transcripts that document grades obtained through the most recent term completed. Submission of final transcripts indicating conferral of the Bachelor’s degree is required prior to enrolling in graduate course work at UAB.

Prospective students should use these checklists to obtain specific admissions requirements on how to apply to Graduate School.

Additional Documents

Students should either contact the program to which they are applying directly, or obtain information from program specific web sites, to determine whether additional documentation such as a Resume/Curriculum Vitae, documentation of work experience or volunteer/community activities, etc. may be required by the program.

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